--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: To discover the truth in anything that is…" description: "\"“To discover the truth in anything that is alien, first dispense with the indispensable in your own vision.”\" — Leonard Cohen" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/47a/leonard-cohen-448_alien_to-discover-the-truth-in-anything-that-i_630183.jpg" --- # To discover the truth in anything that is alien, first… ![“To discover the truth in anything that is alien, first dispense with the indispensable in your own vision.” quote by Leonard Cohen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/47a/leonard-cohen-448_alien_to-discover-the-truth-in-anything-that-i_630183.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/47a/leonard-cohen-448_alien_to-discover-the-truth-in-anything-that-i_630183.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/47a/leonard-cohen-448_alien_to-discover-the-truth-in-anything-that-i_630183.jpg) > ““To discover the truth in anything that is alien, first dispense with the indispensable in your own vision.”” [Leonard Cohen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-cohen/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. To understand foreign truths, first discard personal biases. **In simple terms:** Drop your own assumptions to see new truths. Key Takeaway Question your perspective before judging others. Themes perception truth bias Mood reflective critical Type philosophical introspective When to use this quote - cross‑cultural communication - research methodology - personal growth Key Concepts cognitive psychology philosophy relativism Questions to Reflect On - How can we become aware of hidden biases? - What steps help us view alien ideas objectively? A Different Perspective Biases are hard to recognize and may persist unconsciously. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Alien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/alien/) [Truth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/truth/) ## Related quotes > [Indignation and compassion form a powerful combination. They are indispensable to vision, and therefore to leadership.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-stott/indignation-and-compassion-form-a-powerful-combination-they-are/) [John Stott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-stott/) > [When that truth of alien intervention in our planet's affairs and our ongoing contact with an alien culture is finally revealed, it won't be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-j-corso/when-that-truth-of-alien-intervention-in-our-planet-s-affairs-and-our/) [Philip J. Corso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-j-corso/) > [Why waste time trying to discover the truth, when you can so easily create it?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-baldacci/why-waste-time-trying-to-discover-the-truth-when-you-can-so-easily/) [David Baldacci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-baldacci/) > [The great quest of life has always been to discover truth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-meyer/the-great-quest-of-life-has-always-been-to-discover-truth/) [Joyce Meyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-meyer/) > [In order to discover truth, we must be truthful ourselves, and must welcome those who point out our errors as heartily as those who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-muller/in-order-to-discover-truth-we-must-be-truthful-ourselves-and-must/) [Max Muller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-muller/) > [I want to discover a truth for myself that is really true. Whether it's a piece of scientific knowledge, or a philosophical truth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shatner/i-want-to-discover-a-truth-for-myself-that-is-really-true-whether-it/) [William Shatner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shatner/) > [I shall be obliged to wander to the right and to the left, that I may investigate and discover the truth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/baron-de-montesquieu/i-shall-be-obliged-to-wander-to-the-right-and-to-the-left-that-i-may/) [Baron de Montesquieu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/baron-de-montesquieu/) > [One must know oneself. If this does not serve to discover truth, it at least serves as a rule of life and there is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blaise-pascal/one-must-know-oneself-if-this-does-not-serve-to-discover-truth-it-at/) [Blaise Pascal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blaise-pascal/) > [“We rarely read the Bible to discover truth; more often, we wish to harmonize it with our belief system and see its meaning in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/we-rarely-read-the-bible-to-discover-truth-more-often-we-wish-to/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Since you may never discover the truth, invent it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-lore/since-you-may-never-discover-the-truth-invent-it/) [Nicholas Lore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-lore/) > [Latter-day Saints are not asked to blindly accept everything they hear. We are encouraged to think and discover truth for ourselves. We are expected…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dieter-f-uchtdorf/latter-day-saints-are-not-asked-to-blindly-accept-everything-they/) [Dieter F. Uchtdorf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dieter-f-uchtdorf/) > [You have to dig deep down in your soul to discover the truth that dispels the lies you were told.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/akil-johnson/you-have-to-dig-deep-down-in-your-soul-to-discover-the-truth-that/) Akil Johnson > [“Better not to discover your truth, either to be amazed or shocked.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jamile/better-not-to-discover-your-truth-either-to-be-amazed-or-shocked/) Jamile > [One must become as humble as the dust before he can discover truth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahatma-gandhi/one-must-become-as-humble-as-the-dust-before-he-can-discover-truth/) [Mahatma Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahatma-gandhi/) > [“...the best way to know the Truth or Beauty is to try to express it. And what is the purpose of existence Here or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brenda-ueland/the-best-way-to-know-the-truth-or-beauty-is-to-try-to-express-it-and/) [Brenda Ueland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brenda-ueland/) ## More by Leonard Cohen > [The blizzard of the world has crossed the threshold and it's overturned the order of the soul...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-cohen/the-blizzard-of-the-world-has-crossed-the-threshold-and-it-s/) [Leonard Cohen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-cohen/) > [“Don't matter if you're rich and strong Don't matter if you're weak Don't matter if you write a song The nightingales repeat Don't matter…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-cohen/don-t-matter-if-you-re-rich-and-strong-don-t-matter-if-you-re-weak/) [Leonard Cohen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-cohen/) > [“You don't know me from the wind you never will, you never did I'm the little jew who wrote the Bible. I've seen the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-cohen/you-don-t-know-me-from-the-wind-you-never-will-you-never-did-i-m-the/) [Leonard Cohen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-cohen/) > [“This is it I’m not coming after you I’m going to lie down for half an hour This is it I’m not going down…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-cohen/this-is-it-i-m-not-coming-after-you-i-m-going-to-lie-down-for-half-an/) [Leonard Cohen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-cohen/) > [My sense of proprietorship has been so weak that actually I didn't pay attention and I lost the copyrights on a lot of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-cohen/my-sense-of-proprietorship-has-been-so-weak-that-actually-i-didn-t/) [Leonard Cohen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-cohen/) > [This world is full of conflicts and full of things that cannot be reconciled. But there are moments when we can... reconcile and embrace…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-cohen/this-world-is-full-of-conflicts-and-full-of-things-that-cannot-be/) [Leonard Cohen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-cohen/) > [ I would say the hummingbird really deserves the royalties on \[some of my songs\]. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-cohen/i-would-say-the-hummingbird-really-deserves-the-royalties-on-some-of/) [Leonard Cohen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-cohen/) > [One is given to self-dramatization from time to time. I intend to live forever.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-cohen/one-is-given-to-self-dramatization-from-time-to-time-i-intend-to-live/) [Leonard Cohen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-cohen/) > [The basic function of popular music is to create an environment for courting, lovemaking, and doing the dishes. It's useful because it addresses the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-cohen/the-basic-function-of-popular-music-is-to-create-an-environment-for/) [Leonard Cohen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-cohen/) > [“Blessed are you, embrace of the falling, foundation of the light, master of the human accident.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-cohen/blessed-are-you-embrace-of-the-falling-foundation-of-the-light-master/) [Leonard Cohen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-cohen/) > [I continually blacken pages and scribble away, so I always have a number of songs that are half-finished.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-cohen/i-continually-blacken-pages-and-scribble-away-so-i-always-have-a/) [Leonard Cohen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-cohen/) > [I have nothing against the Queen of England. Even in my heart I never resented her for not being Jackie Kennedy. She is, to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-cohen/i-have-nothing-against-the-queen-of-england-even-in-my-heart-i-never/) [Leonard Cohen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-cohen/) > [I loved you when you opened like a lily to the heat; you see I’m just another snowman standing in the rain and sleet…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-cohen/i-loved-you-when-you-opened-like-a-lily-to-the-heat-you-see-i-m-just/) [Leonard Cohen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-cohen/) > [It's time that we began to laugh and cry and cry and laugh about it all again.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-cohen/it-s-time-that-we-began-to-laugh-and-cry-and-cry-and-laugh-about-it/) [Leonard Cohen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-cohen/) > [“I followed the course From chaos to art Desire the horse Depression the cart”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-cohen/i-followed-the-course-from-chaos-to-art-desire-the-horse-depression/) [Leonard Cohen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-cohen/) [Explore all 543 Leonard Cohen quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-cohen/) ## More Alien quotes > [If you're going to immerse yourself in a project for three years, why not stake out a chunk of the world that is completely…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-powers/if-you-re-going-to-immerse-yourself-in-a-project-for-three-years-why/) [Richard Powers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-powers/) > [“If you are an alien, how come you sound like you're from the north?' 'Lots of planets have a north!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-t-davies/if-you-are-an-alien-how-come-you-sound-like-you-re-from-the-north/) [Russell T Davies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-t-davies/) > [Some pundits have proposed that the aliens have come here to breed with us. Apparently, too much bike riding or something similar has rendered…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-shostak/some-pundits-have-proposed-that-the-aliens-have-come-here-to-breed/) [Seth Shostak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-shostak/) > [North Korea is still my homeland, my country. I suffered on the outside because I was alien, without identity. I was nobody. I was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-hyeon-seo/north-korea-is-still-my-homeland-my-country-i-suffered-on-the-outside/) [Lee Hyeon-seo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-hyeon-seo/) > [I don't want to be the embarrassment of the galaxy to have had the power to deflect an asteroid, and then not and end…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/i-don-t-want-to-be-the-embarrassment-of-the-galaxy-to-have-had-the/) [Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/) > [Whatever is not commonly seen is condemned as alien.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-chang/whatever-is-not-commonly-seen-is-condemned-as-alien/) [Iris Chang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-chang/) > [Alien's a great one. That's a scary movie.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judd-nelson/alien-s-a-great-one-that-s-a-scary-movie/) [Judd Nelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judd-nelson/) > [As far as I can tell, the only unambiguous consequence of the claimed invasion of Earth by beings from another star system has been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-shostak/as-far-as-i-can-tell-the-only-unambiguous-consequence-of-the-claimed/) [Seth Shostak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-shostak/) > [Rick stared at him. "Your brother is an alien." "Yeah, but he's a cute one.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mira-grant/rick-stared-at-him-your-brother-is-an-alien-yeah-but-he-s-a-cute-one/) [Mira Grant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mira-grant/) > [You tell me you love me, but Im not sure you know what love is, or how fast it flies, or how much it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hussein-nishah/you-tell-me-you-love-me-but-im-not-sure-you-know-what-love-is-or-how/) [Hussein Nishah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hussein-nishah/) > [Give consideration to the fact that alien astronomers could have scrutinized Earth for more than 4 billion years without detecting any radio signals, despite…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-shostak/give-consideration-to-the-fact-that-alien-astronomers-could-have/) [Seth Shostak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-shostak/) > [“When I was a kid, I used to watch that show, sitting on the couch in my pajamas and wishing more than anything that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-thomas-ford/when-i-was-a-kid-i-used-to-watch-that-show-sitting-on-the-couch-in-my/) [Michael Thomas Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-thomas-ford/) > [We of alien looks or words must stick together.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-j-sansom/we-of-alien-looks-or-words-must-stick-together/) [C.J. Sansom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-j-sansom/) > [One of the most interesting things for me in playing another species is that you want to make them different enough to be alien…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jaime-murray/one-of-the-most-interesting-things-for-me-in-playing-another-species/) [Jaime Murray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jaime-murray/) > [In a movie, it's often important to have aliens whose gestures and facial expressions can be 'read' by humans. And in the days before…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-shostak/in-a-movie-it-s-often-important-to-have-aliens-whose-gestures-and/) [Seth Shostak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-shostak/) [Browse all 709 Alien quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/alien/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“To discover the truth in anything that is alien, first dispense with the indispensable in your own vision.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Leonard Cohen" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-cohen/to-discover-the-truth-in-anything-that-is-alien-first-dispense-with/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Alien" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-cohen/to-discover-the-truth-in-anything-that-is-alien-first-dispense-with/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/47a/leonard-cohen-448_alien_to-discover-the-truth-in-anything-that-i_630183.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/47a/leonard-cohen-448_alien_to-discover-the-truth-in-anything-that-i_630183.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/47a/leonard-cohen-448_alien_to-discover-the-truth-in-anything-that-i_630183.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“To discover the truth in anything that is alien, first dispense with the indispensable in your own vision.” — Leonard Cohen", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Leonard Cohen", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-cohen/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“To discover the truth in anything...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-cohen/to-discover-the-truth-in-anything-that-is-alien-first-dispense-with/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-cohen/to-discover-the-truth-in-anything-that-is-alien-first-dispense-with/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```